Accused 'scared' of Shannon's mum

A man accused of kidnapping Shannon Matthews told a jury he was "scared" of the youngster's mother.

Michael Donovan began giving evidence at his trial at Leeds Crown Court, where he and Shannon's mother Karen Matthews, 33, deny kidnap, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice.

His barrister Alan Conrad QC asked him: "How do you feel towards Karen? Do you like her?" He replied: "No." Asked why, he went on: "I'm scared of her. She kept threatening me."

Mr Donovan, 40, of Lidgate Gardens, Batley Carr, West Yorkshire, went into the witness box the day after the trial was halted after he received treatment for injuries he received in a prison attack.

Within minutes of him going into the witness box, he had to be asked repeatedly to speak louder by the judge, Mr Justice McCombe.

The charges relate to the 24-day disappearance of Shannon in February and March, when the little girl was nine.

Mr Donovan told the jury that Matthews flagged him down while he was driving in Dewsbury. She told him she had a "problem" and wanted him to sort it out. He claimed she said: "I don't want anyone else to know about it."

They agreed to meet at a cafe in Dewsbury a few days later, the jury was told.

Mr Donovan also told the court that Matthews asked him for a loan of £20,000. Mr Conrad asked him: "Did you have that money?""No, I didn't," he replied.

Mr Conrad then asked him if he would have loaned her the money if he had it. "No," he told the jury.